Redhawks take flight

Southeast Missouri State football coach Tim Billings and his staff always try to keep a wary eye on the heat when preseason practice begins every summer.

And as the Redhawks prepare for today's opening workout -- set for 5:30 p.m. at Houck Stadium -- coaches and trainers will perhaps be even more on the lookout due to the recent death of Missouri's Aaron O'Neal during a voluntary summer conditioning drill.

"What little he [O'Neal] did, and the kind of mild day it was, it's hard for me to believe it's just heat related, and there wasn't something more there," Billings said. "But you hear that, and no question it gets your attention a little more.

"Hot weather is always a concern, and we're always really careful. It's also one of the reasons the NCAA did what it did a few years ago."

Billings was referring to NCAA guidelines regarding preseason workouts that are designed to help eliminate potential heat-related problems.

The first five days of practice are designated "heat acclimation" days, with the first two in helmets only, the next two in helmets and shoulder pads and the fifth in full gear but with no contact. Teams can practice only once per day during those first five days. Also, after that initial five-day period, squads are prohibited from holding two-a-day workouts on consecutive days.

"They just want everybody to be more cautious," Billings said. "It really hasn't affected us much, because I'm not a big believer in beating each other up in practice too much. We want to have our best players on the field for the games.:

Billings said everybody associated with the program is constantly on the lookout for possible heat-related problems during preseason practice.

"The trainers do a great job, and we take a lot of breaks," he said. "We make sure they get lots of fluids, and we make sure they're eating right."

Billings expects most of his players to report in solid shape, particularly the approximately 50 who stayed in Cape Girardeau over the summer for the Redhawks' voluntary conditioning program.

"The ones who stayed here in the summer, we feel like they're in good shape," Billings said. "Hopefully most of the others will be as well."

Players report

Billings said about 90 players were expected to report to camp Friday. He was looking forward to seeing them on the practice field for the first time today.

"This is always an exciting time of the year, but it's really exciting for us this year because we've got a lot of new faces, both players and coaches," Billings said.

The Redhawks are looking to make amends for last year's 3-8 record, including a 3-5 Ohio Valley Conference mark that tied them for sixth place in the nine-team league.

While every preseason publication predicts Southeast will struggle again -- the Redhawks were picked eighth in the OVC's official poll based on voting by the league's coaches and sports information directors -- Billings believes his team can surprise people.

"I understand why we were picked there, and I expected it," Billings said. "We don't have a lot of name guys. People don't know us. Last year most of our top players were seniors.

"But athletically, I feel like we'll be better than we've been, and we've got more team speed than we've had. We're going to be young, but having athletes is a good start. I think we have a lot of talented new players other people don't know about. I think we can surprise people, and I feel like we can contend [for the OVC title]."

The Redhawks again begin the season with three tough nonconference games, starting with a Sept. 1 home contest against Division I-AA power Southern Illinois.

Southeast visits Division I-A Kent State on Sept. 10 and I-AA Missouri State (formerly Southwest Missouri) on Sept. 17 before opening its OVC schedule at home Sept. 24 against two-time defending champion Jacksonville State.

"The schedule will challenge us early, but if we can avoid injuries it should prepare us for the OVC schedule," Billings said. "We're looking forward to getting started."